Guitar Grooves That Shook the World Celebrating Bo Diddley

Step into the rhythm-soaked world of Bo Diddley, where a guitar isn't just an instrument—it's a revolutionary force. Episode 26 of our early 50s genre series pours a glass to the man who redefined rhythm and blues, Ellis McDaniel Bates, better known as Bo Diddley. Born in Mississippi and honed in Chicago, Diddley's clandestine guitar sessions beneath his mother's disapproving gaze laid the groundwork for his seismic impact on music. As we trace his journey from violin virtuoso to guitar legend, we'll uncover the influences that drove him to create his unmistakable sound and the societal currents that both challenged and propelled his ascent to stardom.

Raise your glass higher as we celebrate Bo Diddley's rebellious spirit and tenacious stage presence that left an indelible mark on the rock 'n' roll world. His audacious move on The Ed Sullivan Show not only defied expectations but also challenged the racial barriers of the era. Discover how African rhythms and the twang of a Gretsch guitar became the heartbeat of his music, and how his band's unconventional inclusion of female musicians broke the mold in a time of rigid gender norms. As we pay tribute to a man whose influence rippled through the likes of Jimi Hendrix and beyond, we'll also explore the bittersweet ebb of his popularity and the unexpected reverence found across the Atlantic. Join us for a rousing toast to a man whose name became synonymous with a beat that still echoes through time.

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:01

Welcome, welcome. Welcome to the More Wine and Music podcast, the podcast where we discuss music genre over a glass of wine. I want to welcome each and every one of you on this chilly but pleasant Saturday evening. I want to apologize that I did not upload an episode last week. I am a one-woman show and sometimes this woman gets overwhelmed and overbooked and just kind of stretched to the limit, so I was not able to upload any episodes last week. But I am here tonight. So for those who were out there listening, welcome. For those who are out there listening, welcome. Before we get into episode number 26, I want to remind everybody to please hit that like, hit that share, hit that subscribe button to the More Wine and Music podcast, wwwmore M-O-O-R-E and music dot com. And also, if you want to buy me a coffee, you can buy me a coffee at buy me a coffee dot com. Backslash more wine music. Ok, so this week, which is episode number 26, I believe 25 or 26. I believe it's 26.

Speaker 1: 1:30

Of the new early 50s genre series, we are talking about Bo Diddley. If you don't know Bo Diddley, then you don't know Diddley. If you don't know Bo Diddley, then you don't know Diddley. Okay, everybody should know that name Bo Diddley. But who was Bo Diddley before he became Bo Diddley? He was born Ellis McDaniel Bates on December 30th of 1928 in Macomb, which is Pike County in Mississippi. Incidentally, some sources has his name as Elias I'm sorry as Ellis Otha Bates, which he himself had disputed, and say that he don't know where the name Otha came from. But his name is not Otha. He does not have the name Otha in his. It wasn't on his birth certificate or anything. So he does not know where that name came from. So his name is actually Ellis Bates. Again, he was born on December 30th of 1928 in Macomb, mississippi. He was born to the parents of Ethel Wilson. His father was not I didn't see the name of his father. His father I don't think he had. His father was not in his life.

Speaker 1: 3:09

Actually, the story goes is that he was actually adopted by his mother's first cousin, which was named. Her name was Gussie McDaniel name. Her name was Gussie McDaniel. As most a lot of families back at that time, especially during that time period when a relative have kids it is, you know, that one particular kid they may give that child away to other members of the family because of financial reasons or, you know, because you know they just couldn't take care of the child. So the child may, another relative might come along and say, well, I'll take, I'll take them and raise them as their own. So that's, that's what happened.

Speaker 1: 4:04

What happened in the situation with Bo? He was actually legally adopted by his mother's first cousin, and so his name was changed from Bates to now McDaniel. So his name is now, from here on out, ellis McDaniel Ellis McDaniel, he and his now adopted mom, gussie. She had, I think she had two more children. She had children besides Beau, but he still had in contact with his biological mother. His biological mother became divorced. So she was married but became divorced. I don't know if it was his father or someone else, but she divorced in 1946, remarried, which is strange. She did have other siblings, she did have other children, but she decided to allow her son to be adopted by her cousin.

Speaker 1: 5:29

When Bo, or Ellis, was seven years old, after his adoptive mother, gussie's husband, passed away, she decided to take the children, including Bo. She decided to take the children, including Bo, up to Chicago, left the South and went to Chicago, and it was there that he initially started to learn how to play the violin. He was giving lessons by Professor OW Frederick for 12 years, starting from the age of seven. So he was studying violin until he was 19. And he began to become interested in the guitar in the early 40s.

Speaker 1: 6:23

Now, from the interview that I had seen about, in what he was talking about his life, he said that his mother, his mother Gusty would not, did not like the fact that he became had an interest in guitar. He it learning the violin but the guitar, because in her mind and as usual and as usually so in her mind, the guitar leads to what they again, what they always called as the devil's music. So she was not too happy about him and she did not allow him to bring that type of music into her house. Now, it was fine for him to learn how to play the violin. It was she really wanted him to go to school and study math, anything that's academically inclined, but she did not want her son to be any type of musician, especially music like the blues or anything like that. I mean, that just was not allowed in her house. But you know, as kids do, they find their way If they're determined to find their way to learn what's you know or be a part of what was going on at the time as far as other kids and what was the end thing to do? Kids will find their way to do that and that's exactly what Bo did. So he actually taught himself and became interested in playing the guitar, and his major influencer at the time was John Lee Hooker. He really liked the sound of John Lee Hooker's music so he really wanted to emulate John Lee Hooker. So by the age of 13, he was beginning to play on Langley Avenue in Chicago with his friend Jerome Green and quoted this is what he said I had a raggedy guitar, a washtub bass, a dude sanding on a sheet of paper and Jerome had maracas shaking him and, man, it was lovely. This is what Bo had talked about later on. And besides the violin and the guitar, bo also knew how to play the trombone with the Baptist Congress Band and by the time he was 20 years old he had formed the Langley Avenue Jivecats with legendary slide guitarist Earl Hooker playing at the 708 Club in Chicago. Playing at the 708 Club in Chicago.

Speaker 1: 9:30

After graduating, bo Diddley got married and began working odd jobs outside of music and construction, and he was actually a semi-pro boxer. However, he was laid off from construction for a while and decided to take another shot at music. He went out and bought an electric guitar and for its volume potential in a rowdy clubs and then record a single on a disc cutter owned by one of his neighbors. Diddley peddled his songs, which was called I Am A man, and back with another song called Bo Diddley. He was named, incidentally, he became known or was nicknamed Bo Diddley because Diddley was known as a saying that he was a person that didn't know anything, that the person was basically a lowlife you don't know nothing, you don't know Diddley.

Speaker 1: 10:33

That's how he pretty much got his name as Bo Diddley, the boy who doesn't know nothing and what is not going to be nothing. So that became his nickname, but which we later on, you know that know nothing or not going to be nothing. Boy became used that to his advantage, and he did become somebody later on, as we will talk about his advantage. And he did become somebody later on, as we will talk about. But, like I was saying, you know, his major influence was John Lee Hooker and then he started in being in Chicago. He had no choice but to hear the influences of Muddy Waters because Muddy Waters was in Chicago at that time and Muddy Waters brought in a new sound of music, of the blues, to Chicago. So he became a fan of Muddy Waters as well as Willie Dixon and Holland Wolfe, and also a good friend of his, which we'll later, you know we all know is Chuck Berry. Of his, which we all know is Chuck Berry.

Speaker 1: 11:47

Chess Records saw a market for Diddley's sound because Diddley, he had a different sound than what was actually being played at that time. He used a lot of reverbs in his music, a lot of congos. He used a lot of caracas. So he used a lot of reverbs in his music. A lot of congos, he used a lot of caracas, so he used a lot of African style beats with his music.

Speaker 1: 12:11

Along with his guitar playing and the guitar the sound was very loud, very loud and kind of distorted. So he brought that into the early. He brought that on the scene in the early 50s. So you might say he was the kind of the innovator for an influential musician for those that came after him in the 60s, Like you know my man and my favorite 60s guitarist, jimi Hendrix. So when I read about Bo Diddley's, you know Ralph researching the biography and describing what his type of sound was and then listening to the music you know. So he was really much the innovator of that distortion of the electric guitar and the manipulation of the sound of the guitar and the reverb sounds of how he plays. So Hendrix pretty much kind of mirrored his playing after that, bo Diddley, which was rather obscene. He recorded a lot of songs that you know. At the time, like I said, it wasn't, it was kind of it was different. Nobody heard you know some of the songs that he played and how he played it. So the record, his first album, which was called Bo Diddley, was self titled.

Speaker 1: 13:59

Bo Diddley was also released in 1955, he made his first appearance on the Ed Sullivan television show before hooking up with Alan Free's rock and roll package to tour the country. Now here's a little side note about that. When he came on Ed Sullivan's show didn't realize or know now, or you know, can remember about Ed Sullivan. He was one of the very few entertainers, show hosts, who had his own show and that would actually have Black entertainers, black musicians and entertainers on his show. Not too many of them would do that. So Ed Sullivan, he was one of the ones that actually did.

Speaker 1: 14:46

And so when he had Bo Diddley and his group on the show, he was asked beforehand to play a certain song. I think, from what I read, it was some kind of rendition of the Tennessee Waltz or something. It was something that he was requested to play by Mr Sullivan. Well, it didn't go that way, bo Diddley, bo and his band. They played one of his original songs and I forgot what song it was. It might've been I'm a man, it might've been. If anybody's out there who would remember, please let me know.

Speaker 1: 15:37

But it was one of his first, you know, hit songs and he played it, you know. Of course, he had his band who was on the drums and they had the congos and the actual beat and his signature style of playing. He had a guitar. One of his signature guitars was a Gretsch, which was what my father used to have. By the way, that's one of his favorite guitar instrument. Style of a brand of guitar was a Gretsch, but Bo's Gretsch was made into like a box, like a cigarette box, so it was a box shape, but he played that and the song. I know the song. I forgot the song, but it was one of his famous songs, but he played that instead of what Ed Sullivan had requested him to play and they said that after he played it. I mean the crowd, the audience loved it, but Ed Sullivan had requested him to play and they said that after he played. I mean, the crowd, the audience loved it, but Ed Sullivan did not.

Speaker 1: 16:48

He was furious. He was furious at Bo for playing something that he really he wasn't asked to play and on interviews Bo had said that later on, talking about this particular incident, that as soon as he got off the stage Ed Sullivan came to him and he said you are the first colored boy I had on this on my show. That didn't. That went against what I asked, you know, for you to do. And you know, at first, at first, you know, bo was actually, you know, offended Cause he didn't from what he said, he didn't understand. He didn't. You know he was getting ready to actually pretty much cuss at Sullivan out at first because, all because of what Sullivan said, because of him being a colored person At that time he wasn't Negro, he wasn't Black. At that particular time in the 50s Black Americans were colored. But you know he thought about it and he pretty much understood that he was kind of like the innovator. He did something that you know no other artists had done, which was go against what Ed Sullivan had requested. That was a little side piece and that was really something that really made him stand out.

Speaker 1: 18:37

After that, from then on, the diddly beat was simple yet infectious. It was not a it's not subscribed as a hand bone. It's kind of different from the hand bone beat. It was called a idiosyncratic rhythm and, like he said, it was called a idiosyncratic rhythm and, like he said, it was heavily influenced from the African sounds and beats of the African drums. So he, you know, he used that and incorporated into his guitar playing and what's.

Speaker 1: 19:23

The other thing that was interesting was his backup, his band. He had three females in the band as his backup and one of the females, I think, if I'm not mistaken. I don't know if it was his stepsister or not, but it was a female. She also played the guitar. So that was definitely, definitely, definitely ahead of its time. You know, you always have female singers. Back then they were just, you know, either clap their hands and sing, you know anything like that, sing, you know anything like that. But no, his female singers. You know they were, they were also singing, but they had one that actually played along with Bo and the and the rest of the male players. So that that was definitely, definitely, definitely ahead of its time.

Speaker 1: 20:25

So he was definitely very forward thinking in that manner, as I was trying to describe about his special effects of the guitar and his way of manipulating that sound of that reverb which is like an echo when you hit a chord it reverbs and it has that distorted sound. He also incorporated playing with a str, know with a strut. He would play while he's playing, he would strut across the stage, he would play with his teeth, hold the guitar over his head or between his legs. Again, that was the influence of what Jimi Hendrix and others in the 60s had emulated. Bo Diddley was the one who started that, who was the innovator of that, and towards the 50s and into the 60s he would be considered the unsung musician. He didn't have high up on top of top of hits, but In the 60s, you know, it was pretty much he was kind of like fading out and it was kind of like his songs was kind of like fading out. His last charted single was Ooh Baby in 1967.

Speaker 1: 22:21

The British artists and you know guitar. You know not guitarists, but the British musicians. That really much kept the interest of people like Fats Domino, people like Bo Diddley. You know they pretty much would have fell by the wayside. And that's one thing about American audiences.

Speaker 1: 22:48

Than European audiences At least Europeans they do if they like you, they will keep. You know, keep you, they will keep you alive. As far as keep your music, you know they love your music. If they love your music, they are diehard fans. Americans they're more. You know fair weather, okay, you're, you're fine for a few years. And if you don't have, you know, after a while you kind of fall off and then they, you know they'll feed on, go on to something else that's new, that's up and coming. They don't They'll feed on, go on to something else that's new, that's up and coming. Not to say that they're not loyal to the older, but they're more quick to drop you and then go on to the next hot, new, up and coming artist.

Speaker 1: 23:59

Europe, if you don't make it here in the States, you more likely will be more accepted and more tend to appreciate. You know your music, you know more than what the States are, and which is a lot of why which is why a lot of artists leave American artists leave the States and, you know, live over or perform over across seas because, you know, again, they can make more money and they're more popular over there than they would be here. You know, if you don't have a, you know, consistently major hit, you know, you're, you're pretty much dumped and moved on to, you know, and pretty much forgotten, pretty much forgotten. So that's basically what happened with Bo he throughout the 70s. He would make appearances here and there, but it wasn't like he made other number big hit records and if he did, it didn't top the charts or anything. The only last appearance or something that kind of rekindled his fame of who he was was during.

Speaker 1: 25:16

The time was like in the late 80s, when the well, I think it was a football player and also a baseball player, bo Jackson, who was also talented not only as a athlete but also as a musician. And so I remember that commercial of Bo Jackson, you know, saying that Bo can do this, bo can play baseball. Bo can, you know, play? He plays football, but can Bo play, you know, the guitar? It was something. And then Bo Diddley played a little riff with Bo Jackson, you know. So it was kind of, you know, that kind of rekindled a renewed interest of people with Bo Diddley. And you know, because both their name was Bo, oh Bo, you do know, you know Diddley. So I mean I do remember I don't know I forgot that how it actually went, but I do remember that commercial.

Speaker 1: 26:19

So again, that kind of renewed, a little bit of interest in people and really recognizing and appreciate what Bo, who Bo Diddley was, knew, a little bit of interest in people and really recognizing and appreciate what both who Bo Diddley was and how he contribute to the rock and roll, early rock and roll. And you know again, people like Elvis and Buddy Holly, and you know the white audience, the white rock and roll audience or players. They took their way of playing, they took their influence from people like Bo Diddley, you know. But Bo Diddley didn't get the recognition, as you know, a lot of other musicians would get, even though he was a lot of. He paved the way or was an innovator in a lot of the way of his music. In 1986, he was inducted into the Washington Area Music Association Hall of Fame. Then again in 1996, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. He also received the Lifetime Achievement Award for the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in LA, and in 2000, he was inducted into the Mississippi Music Musicians Hall of Fame, as well as North Florida Music Association. In 2007, bo Diddley received the Governor's Award of Excellence in the Arts for Lifetime Achievement, which is the highest arts honor that you can receive in the state of Mississippi.

Speaker 1: 28:16

In 2008, bo Diddley died of heart failure. He was at. He was in. This was when he lived in Florida, at the time at the age of 79. And during his lifetime. Now I couldn't find anything more as far as personal personal life. Other though, he was married, and he ended up being married four times, and out of that four, four times of being married, he has five children, and from those five children he has 15 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren. So that's very unusual and that's very blessed for him to have great great grandchildren. That's pretty much about Bo Diddley, even though he was nicknamed that you don't know nothing, you don't know squat, you don't know Diddley. Bo Diddly did a lot for the early 50s music genre and he contributed a lot. And, again, he was a lot of innovators. He was the main pioneer, the innovator of the style of music, the style of guitar playing, which Hendrix and others have emulated later on into the 60s. So there you have it All right.

Speaker 1: 29:58

Next week I'm going to talk about I'm going to go into the group and I'm going to talk about, I'm going to go into the group and I'm going to talk about. You know, we, we know Richie Valens and um, but I'm going to talk about Richie Valens next week, um and his early tragic um. You know his, how his career was cut short, but he was a, you know, up and coming young, early fifties artist and but unfortunately it was cut short. So we're going to talk about Richie Valens, all right. Again, I hope people will subscribe to the, to whatever about podcast that you listen to. Hit that subscribe button. Also, if you have questions or would like a particular person that you would like for me to talk about within the early rock and roll series, please hit me up at wwwmorewineandmusiccom. You guys stay safe and I will talk to you next week, peace.